New Zealand

Auckland Art Gallery

Seismic strengthening, major refurbishment and new extensions were undertaken at the Auckland Art Gallery. The fire safety design involved a challenging mix of conflicting aspirations. The existing building - one of the oldest in Auckland - was the first municipal art gallery built in New Zealand and contains the most valuable public art collection in the country.Computational Fluid Dynamics modelling was used to assess the smoke movement within the impressive four storey north atrium and other interconnected open spaces.

Holmes Fire designed the systems controlling fire and smoke spread to not only protect the occupants, but also to protect the building and the valuable art collections.

Standard solutions for exit signage and security on exit doors were also modified to suit the specific requirements for this building.

Holmes Fire provided a fire safety upgrade design that was sensitive to the heritage features of the building and provided the architectural freedom to seamlessly blend the old with the new.

Testimonial

“The NZFS recognises and commends the high standard set and achieved by Holmes Fire in this FEB process. By doing so Holmes Fire & Safety should be recognised as an organisation which is leading the way in performance based design nationally and internationally.”